


Blood, Moonlust, and Leather

by harpers_child



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-20
Updated: 2011-05-20
Packaged: 2017-10-19 15:43:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/202484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harpers_child/pseuds/harpers_child
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oz comes home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Blood, Moonlust, and Leather

**Author's Note:**

> This is a mix of prose/poetry and standard storytelling. Original Female Character in a friendship role with a named character.
> 
> WARNING: Brief mention of off screen rape. First instance is in passing. Last section of story is mental thoughts that go in slightly more detail. NON-GRAPHIC.

It's raining.

That normally doesn't bother me.

Tonight it does.

The moon is full tonight.

Funny how I just noticed.

A few months, weeks ago I felt every phase of the moon, that celestial orb, in my bones.

Not anymore.

I found out what I am.

Strangely enough, I had to surrender to master myself.

I forget who told me that.

I still have this urge to howl at the moon.

To let go and become one with the wild.

But the urge fades away.

They come less often now.

The rain washes the earth clean.

I was washed clean a long time ago.

It's time to go home.

Go home to my friends, the people who are the closest to family I've ever had.

Last time I tried to go back, well let's just say it was of the bad.

Now though, I'm ready.

I mastered myself and the wolf inside of me.

I've become one with myself and the universe.

The moonlust faded away to nothing a while back.

I'm not afraid I'll lose control anymore.

It's time to go home.  
\--- --- ---  
"I'm going back." Where is understood. It's like that between Tali and me.

"I know. You mind if I come?"

"No." She's my pack. I'd never leave her.

"Cool." Pause.

"You're still afraid of him." Not a question. And she knows who *he* is.

"Yes."

"Tali,"

"I know, Oz."

"Then why do you let him do this to you? Why do you give him this power over you?" She shrugs.

"You have to surrender to master."

"Don't go all Zen on me. Not now. We've been through too much together for you to pull that cryptic shit on me."

"I know."

"I'm supposed to be the monosyllabic one." She smiles.

"I know."

"What the hell is your problem?"

"He was at the last gas station." I almost drive off the road.

"What? Who?"

"The guy with the truck you were talking to."

"Oh goddess. Tali, I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"I know. I trust you, Oz. I know you'd never intentionally hurt me."

"It's the unintentional stuff I'm worried about."

"I trust you. You're my friend." There's a moment of silence.

"Thank you." She smiles at me.

"I know."  
\--- --- ---  
She has sweet soft sweat slicked skin  
And smells of peaches and rain  
But she's wilder than that  
A connection to the past  
Something pure and primal  
The beast in her talks to the one in me  
The rain beats a tattoo on the roof  
She smiles and pulls on her clothes  
Faded blue jeans and a shirt  
She never wears shoes  
She leaves taking the smell of the forest with her  
She's considering going back  
Someday I might. Or maybe not.  
I'm something wild and pure and primal  
And the Lady always reclaims what's hers  
But home isn't always where you think it should be  
\--- --- ---  
The door jangles a bell. Surprisingly enough I wasn't expecting it. Strange how loud it sounds after months of limited human contact. Gas stations, trailer parks, and camping grounds don't really count. Tali... isn't quite human. I'm not quite human either, but no complaints there. They're staring at me. My friends. My family. It doesn't really matter what you call them, what they are never changes. Not much at least. I guess I better say something.

"Hey."

"Oz?" Xander asks.

"Last time I checked."

"How are you doing?" Willow's girlfriend questions. I have to smile at that.

"Better. A lot better than last time." She smiles back. Not afraid of much that one.

"That's a good thing." She says. It's like a private joke between the two of us. Funny, I don't really know her. But Willow's happy, so it's all good. The bell jangles again. I feel Tali jump behind me.

"Blessed Mother and the Holy Ghost in a motel room!"

"Can I help you?" Giles asks. He's being all British, which is good and familiar. Tali walks into the store.

"I'm with short and fuzzy. Van's parked." She tosses the keys at me. The Scoobies stare at me again. And that would be? Oh, because I caught the keys without looking. Didn't have to look. I could sense her.

"Everyone, this is Tali. Tali, this is everyone."

"I've always wanted to know a collective. Do you have individual names, or do I address you as a whole?" My Willow laughs. Though I guess she isn't my Willow anymore.

"Individual names. I'm Willow." They smile at one another. Something passes between them. I think it's along the lines of 'don't worry, I'm taking good care of him' 'you'd better' 'I know, I'm not a threat' 'I don't have any reason to feel threatened.' Territorial pissing contest over lil' ol' me.

"I'm Buffy. Have you known Oz long?" The tone of voice says 'our Oz. you don't hurt our Oz.'

"A few months. I'm his first wolf-Zen student."

"It's not really Zen."

"I know. But it sounds better than saying I smack you with a rabbit every time you act like a little shit."

"There was a distinct lack of rabbit the second time. And every time after that. And I don't act like a little shit."

"Oz, are you possessed?" Xander inquires.

"I don't think so. Why?"

"You're talking. A lot. Stop it. You're scaring me." He says.

"Oh."

"Don't tell him that. I just got him to say more than five words together at a time." Tali.

"You're the one who's gone laconic." I respond. Tali laughs.

"Throw my own words back at me. Little chicken can't even come up with his own creative insults."

"Japanese fairytales?"

"You know me too well."

"I gave you the book. And little chicken was a demon hunter."

"I know. I meant it as a school yard taunt. Little as in your height, and chicken as in courage."

"Oh. Makes more sense that way."

"Probably."

"Are you two dating?" Anya asks. Way to make the bluntness work for you.

"Goddessno." And I really meant to say that in a better way.

"What my colleague was trying to say is that we'd kill each other if we ever lost so much sanity as to attempt romantic involvement." Tali translates.

"We'd be officially insane. Bring on the nice men with the white jackets."

"Funny farm and the happy dust." Tali.

"Padded rooms."

"Cages." She says it quietly. I turn to face her.

"Thought you got over that."

"Claustrophobia?"

"Not buying it."

"Didn't think so. Let's just say it's not something you really get over and file it under later."

"Back at camp."

"Yes, Oz-san."

"Don't pull the monosyllabic cryptic Zen crap on me again. Once a week is more than enough."

"Understood."

"You're talking again. Don't make me cower behind the girls. Cause I will." Xander mock threatens. I shrug and turn back to face the group.

"The talking thing's become a habit."

"Mention twelve step programs and I rip out your throat." Tali says.

"Bad Tali."

"Bite me."

Growr. /Not here. Not now. Know your place./

She growls back. /Don't pretend to be something you're not. Not human. Wolf./

"Surrender to master." She says. So I do. Let go and let the wolf roll through me. Like in tug of war, you let go and the other guy falls on his ass. Things cool down.

"Oz?" Willow asks. I blink away yellow eyes.

"Gimmie a sec."

"Two shops down. I'll be fine here. Go set up camp." Tali tells me, or orders. I'm not sure which. One of these days, we have to sit down and figure out the pack hierarchy.

"Ok. Bye." Walk outside. Rush of air. It's tainted. Too much fear and death in this place. But I knew that. Things got... intense in there. She'll explain. She's a friend. /Pack./ Everything will be alright.  
\--- --- ---

I never expected this. That doesn't sound right. Let me explain. I never expected to be sitting in the Bronze with the Scoobies, my ex-girlfriend and her girlfriend, and Tali. It's only slightly Twilight Zone-ish. I never expected to see Devon hitting on Tali. Never expected to see Tali flirting back. The freaky thing is Dev accepted that Tali and I are both werewolves without blinking. He's not high either. Actually I think this would all be more explainable if *I* were high. But Dev and Tali, flirting, talking, looking like they'd be a couple, and laughing. That is what I never expected. I underestimated her. Tali I mean.

She was hurt bad right before I met her. Goddess blast narrow-minded backwoods country hicks who think they have the god given right to hit their women. And yell at them. And rape them. And stuff them in cages and tell them that no one would ever listen to a freak like you. May they find the Light. That usually isn't meant as a curse, but for *him* it is. But she's doing better.

She smiles at me. /Don't worry, I'm ok. Everything's alright now./ It reminds me of that song, 'I'm all right, I'll be ok, if I can keep myself awake.' That holds true for Tali. She only thinks about *him* late at night in her dreams. I'm her friend, so when she wakes up in a cold sweat shaking with fear I let her go. She stopped screaming in her sleep a few months back. When she wakes up from that dream, she goes out hunting. She runs down something small, and cute, and furry, and weak and she kills it. She brings it home. I don't remember when the van became home. After she hunts, she comes back to the van, back home, back to me. She sits outside until the sun comes up. Then she comes back inside and goes back to sleep. I get up and cook whatever it is, usually rabbit, and toss her clothes inside. She wakes up when the food's ready and we eat. Then we move on, or stay, or whatever we do. She sleeps easy until something triggers her memory. Then she smiles her sad sweet smile and tells me she trusts me, and goes out to run free for a while.

"Tali, wanna take a spin on the floor?" Devon asks. She freezes.

I make a soft sound only Tali and maybe Buffy can hear. /I'm not going anywhere. I'll never leave./ She smiles.

"I'd like that." Tali answers. They leave the group. Take places on the dance floor and start swaying to the music. Some Dingo's groupie sighs and says something about how they're so beautiful. They are. Devon's tall and thin and radiant in his glam rock clothes. Tight glittering blue jeans that look like they were spray painted on, and a tight black t-shirt and his hair is falling in his eyes because either he's forgotten to cut it or he's growing it out. If one of us was a chick, I'd be madly in love with him. Tali though, Tali is simply glowing with an otherworldly je ne se quios. Black leather pants she found shoved under the front seat that are possibly mine and a tight blue shirt with the word ‘Bitch' emblazoned across the chest in silver. Her hair is slightly wild, and her eyes are almost the wolf. Sexuality pours from them and infects the air. Soon there's an open space around them like some sort of magical force field. They twist and grind and move and it's foreplay between the two of them and the rest of us. Some wise guy messes with the lights and tosses a few spotlights over them. Green and blue and red and white and yellow flashing off Devon's jeans. A strobe starts and the lights and the music and everything just builds to a crescendo and the sex and the forest and everything pure and primal and wild and ancient pours from the couple on the dance floor and washes over us. We're washed clean with the past and energy and the blood that flows in all of our veins. And in the countless nights I saw it, and it was good.

*** BEGIN ***


	2. Adora Dora

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Further musings in the same universe as "Blood, Moonlust, and Leather".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More original characters. Bits of possible werewolf mythology.

Hush my baby  
Sleep my child  
Close your eyes for a while  
You're our love  
You're our life  
You're our  
Adora Dorathy  
Adora forever  
Adora our child  
Adora Dorathy  
Sleep  
And I'll adore you a while  
\--- --- ---  
She wears mirrored sunglasses and a beat up leather jacket. She has nine earrings in each ear. Tiny silver loops cascading down the curve of her ear, the holes punctuated by bright red. Whenever I ask her about it, she laughs and says she's allergic. Wonder why she wears them if she is. She wears six beaded necklaces from somewhere in Asia, I think Tibet, and a ring on each finger, two on her thumbs. She dyes her hair wild colors. This week it's magenta. She plays the guitar. One of these days, I'll find out who "Sweet T" is. She drives a zebra striped van with a couch bolted to the floor in back. Says it's family tradition. She lives in the woods outside town in a cabin with her godfather. Rumor says they're werewolves. But I don't think Dora's like that, even if I've never seen her eyes.  
\--- --- ---  
You'd make the moon weep for your fate  
The tides would rebel to keep you safe  
The sun would cease to shine to hide your face  
For you who have begun to walk on two legs  
\--- --- ---  
The Inca called silver "tears of the moon." Or was it the Maya? Anyway, tears of the moon. Werewolves are sometimes called "children of the moon." Do you see the irony? The moon's tears burn her children. Err. Makes them itch like crazy. Some legend says it's because we betrayed her at some point. Ha. The local wolf pack says it's because we try to be like other two-legs. If that's true, why does silver burn me and Oz and mom? We're wolves through and through. I was born with freakin yellow eyes. Where'd I put my sunglasses? Can't have the townies seeing that. Silver though. It's the only way to tell a wolf, a real wolf, a two-legged wolf, from a mad one. A werewolf who kills for pleasure and loses their mind to the moon. True wolves always wear silver. The itch is worth the control. Earrings mostly. Most have prayers etched into them. I know I do. I wear nine in each ear. Nine loops in each ear. Six beaded necklaces. Three from Oz's trip to Tibet before he met mom. Two mom and dad picked up at a reservation going to a gig. One's from my trip to Tibet. I wear a ring on every finger and two on my thumbs. Six rings on each hand for a total of twelve. Thirteen rings in all cause I wear a toe ring on my right foot. I'm a little superstitious. It's a good luck thing for me. So I wear eighteen circles in my ears that itch and keep the wolf at bay. And twelve circles on my hands to remind me of the pack. And six around my neck to remind me there's something bigger than the forest and something more than the pack and we go out and fight every night because there are things worth fighting for. I wear a circle on my foot to remind me to always come home, because there's nothing more important than those you love.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a decade ago. Some of the prose/poetry bits from this and the sequel were published in my high-school's creative writing zine. Some of the same bits were written for assignments in my creative writing class.


End file.
